Epidemiological features of a recent zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis outbreak in Zagora province, southern Morocco

by Adil El Hamouchi, Othmane Daoui, Mouad Ait Kbaich, Idris Mhaidi, Sofia El Kacem, Ikram Guizani, M ’hammed Sarih, Meryem Lemrani BackgroundLeishmania major is an endemic vector-borne disease in Morocco that causes zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL), especially in arid pre-Saharan regions where its unique vector and reservoir arePhlebotomus papatasi andMeriones shawi, respectively, and may cause epidemics. In late 2017, the Zagora province, an endemic focus for ZCL in southern Morocco, had CL outbreak. The main objective of our investigation was to analyze the epidemiological features of this latest ZCL outbreak. Methodology/Principal findingsWe analyzed epidemiological features of this latest ZCL outbreak. The Regional Delegation of Health, Zagora, recorded 4,402 CL patients between October 2017 and end of March 2018. Our findings showed that 24 municipalities were affected and majority (55.1%) of infected cases belonged to the Tinzouline rural municipality. Majority of patients were females (57.2%). While all age group patients were affected, those aged
Source: PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases - Category: Tropical Medicine Authors: Source Type: research